Mark Clayton became this year’s obscure Tennessee candidate thrust into the spotlight Thursday night, when he beat out a field of Democratic candidates vying for the right to take on U.S. Sen. Bob Corker in November.

Very little is known about Clayton, but he did run as a Democratic candidate for the Senate once before. In 2008, Clayton got 32,309 votes in the primary but lost to Bob Tuke, who was subsequently trounced in the general election by Sen. Lamar Alexander.

As in 2008, Clayton is poised to run to the right of the Republican incumbent. But enough of our description. Here’s the man himself, in his own words. The Old West theme is undermined, unfortunately, by the constant traffic noise and occasional car alarm, but there’s plenty here to discuss.